Nudge and I
by 13.Starlight-Mist
Summary: After a nasty breakup with Ron, Hermione buries herself in her work. Finally, her boss has had enough and orders her to take a vacation, during which Draco sets out to capture her heart, disguised as a cuddly golden retriever. [Threeshot Animagus Dramione]
1. Chapter 1

**Nudge and I  
****By:** 'Starlight-Mist'  
**Summary: **Hermione has just broken up with Ron, and in order to forget about him, she buries herself in her work. Finally, her boss has had enough and orders her to take a vacation, during which Draco sets out to capture her heart, disguised as a cuddly golden retriever. Warning of romance novels and slight Ron-Bashing. [Threeshot Animagus Dramione]  
**Disclaimer:** My name is not J.K. Rowling and I don't own 'Harry Potter.'

* * *

_It is a beautiful day today. _

_The sun is shining down on me, the daffodils in front of the Malfoy Building are swaying in the wind, and the birds are calling. Though my dark grey skirt is riding up to my knees and my tie is flapping in my face, I don't care. _

_All I want to do is get away from the man pursuing me - the man that I thought I could trust._

_"Hermione, love! Hermione," he calls to me, a pleading tone in his voice, "Hermione, I'm sorry!"_

_Noting his use of a pet name, I slowly come to a halt and turn around to face him._

_"Sorry for what," I demand, glaring through tears as I clench my fists, my fingernails biting into my palms. "Are you sorry for kissing Lav-Lav?"_

"_Of course I am," he says, looking at me with puppy eyes, "it just-"_

"_Save your apologies, Ron," I yell, cutting him off. "I first saw you kissing at Christmas time but I dismissed it as the curse of the mistletoe. Then, I saw you two on New Year's Day, but I dismissed it as the traditional New Year's Kiss. After that was Valentine's Day, and I thought that it was just her kissing you, not the other way around and-"_

_The people around me look at me with pitying eyes, and I break off into sobs. Ron advances towards me, but I back away from him._

"_Ron," I sniffle, trying my best to compose myself, "as your girlfriend, I truly believed that you were still faithful to me and wouldn't go behind my back. Now, that trust is broken, and I'm not even sure we are still friends. I think I will eventually accept you as a friend again, but for right now? Please leave me alone and give me some time to cool off."_

_Ron looks as if he wants to say something, but quickly catches himself._

"_Alright...Hermione," he says meekly before turning and walking away._

_When he has finally gone out of sight, I sit down on a nearby bench and run a hair through my hair, slipping off my shoes._

"_Oh, Ron," I sniffle, looking up at the sky, "oh, Ron."_

* * *

**The Malfoy Building: Hermione's Office**

"Hermione," a soft voice calls, shaking my shoulder, "Hermione! Wake up!"

"Mom," I groan, "just a few more minutes?"

I hear a soft chuckle. "I'm not your mom, Hermione. Now, please wake up."

"Please?" I plead, yawning as I bury my face into something fuzzy.

"Hermione, sleeping on a broomstick hovering twenty feet above the-"

I shoot up in my seat, terror written all over my face, and quickly realize that I am _not_ on a broomstick, but in my office.

"Not funny, Sanjea," I tell my secretary, rubbing my eyes as I stretch and yawn.

Sanjea, however, ignores my comment.

"Hermione, this must be your tenth dream about your breakup with Ron," she sighs, "which is a sure sign that you are overworked."

"I am _not_," I say, stifling a yawn, "overworked."

"See?" Sanjea asks in a patronizing tone, taking my yawn as an opportunity to prove her point. "You are tired. You have solved more cases _today_ than most people do in a _week!_ Yes, this is your way of trying to forget about Ron, but it is unhealthy."

I give Sanjea a stern look.

"Once again, Sanjea, I am fine."

With that, I turn back to my paperwork, methodically filling out and writing in the forms as Sanjea exits the room.

As I place the sheet on top of the pile of work I have already finished, a small voice at the back of my mind whispers to me about how soft and inviting the pile looks while another voice counters the first voice, asking me how I expect to keep my job if I am found sleeping on the job again.

Sighing, I continue filling out forms, working my way through the huge pile in front of me.

A few minutes later, the door to my office flies open and Sanjea marches through, the boss of the entire company following close behind.

Before I can greet him, Sanjea starts ranting, "Look at her. _Look_ at her!"

I stand up.

"Really Sanjea," I say, "you don't need to bring Mr. Malfoy into this."

Sanjea glares at me, then storms over to my desk and grabs my pile of finished work.

"Look at this," the beautiful Indian shrieks, waving it in Lucius' face, "just look at it! This is her _day's_ worth of work!"

"Ms. Granger," Lucius sighs, "as Head of Malfoy Potion's Company, I can and will fire you if you don't take a vacation for the weekend. No work on Friday, no work on Saturday, and now work on Sunday."

I nearly gape at him. Finally, I cross my arms over my chest.

"Fine," I say, feeling like a petulant little child, as I have no intentions of doing so.

"I want an Unbreakable Vow that you won't do ANY paperwork, at all," he demands, giving me the Malfoy Smirk.

With a reluctant sigh, we perform the vow with Sanjea as the witness, which rids me of any chance of using any loopholes; Sanjea knows exactly how I think.

With a sigh, I grab my coat and follow Lucius and Sanjea out of my office and down to the lobby. Just as I'm about to exit, Lucius places a hand on my shoulder.

"By the way, don't try and contact me about your no -more -working woes," he tells me, "I'll be out of town for the weekend."

Barely resisting the urge to groan, I exit the building.

**Hermione's Flat**

After I have opened the door of my flat and hung up my coat, I immediately make a beeline for my kitchen. How long has it been since I've had a full and balanced meal that hasn't come from the Malfoy Building cafeteria?

Half an hour later, a shepard's pie is sitting and baking in the oven, so I decide to take a shower. Grabbing some at-home clothes, I snatch a towel and enter my bathroom.

As beads of water run down my skin, I realize that Sanjea is right. It has been too long since I have had a nice, long rest from work.

Toweling my hair dry, I exit the bathroom and walk back to my kitchen, noting with alarm that my pie is a bit more than golden brown. Hurrying over to the oven, I levitate it out. After casting a cooling charm on it, then cutting it, I sit down and start eating.

Luckily, my shepherd's pie isn't burnt, just a little crispy on the edges. Though I tend to like it golden-brown, I can settle for crispy too.

I cut the pie into slices, then start eating.

Once finished, I carry my plate over to the sink and wash it off. Leaving it on the drying rack, I head towards the bathroom and get ready for bed.

As I brush my teeth, I look out the bathroom door and out to my bedroom. The peeling wallpaper is a faded pink with little white designs, and the carpeted floor looks old. My bed and desk are the only two things about my bedroom that look new, and I frown.

Spitting out the toothpaste, I rinse my mouth and walk over to my bed. As I pull the covers down, I flick on the old-fashioned-lamp on my bedside stand and turn off the lights of my room. Crawling into bed by the light of my lamp, I pick up my newest book, _The Call of the Night._ I am not generally into romantic sappy stuff, but this book has had an interesting storyline, and as Ginny once put it: "So, Hermione...when your love life doesn't exist, the best thing to do is definitely to turn to a book."

I'm not sure if she was being serious or sarcastic.

Cracking it open, I pick up from where I left off, where the protagonist's father doesn't approve of the man-of-her-dreams.

_"Ashley, Ashley," my father called, "that man isn't good enough for you. You need a man who can provide for you, who can take care for you, who can love you..."_

_I clench my fists and ignore his baiting._

"_Frederick is just a low-life, a mere merchant with honey-sweet words and mesmerizing lies, unlike the likes of the men I have chosen for you."_

_After an agonizing hour of my father walking around our garden and baiting me with taunts about Frederick, he finally gives up and exits the garden. _

_Once I am sure he has gone, I drop out of the tree that I had been hiding it. Shaking leaves and bits of bark from my hair, I flee from the garden. My legs carry me to Frederick's house, almost as if they know where my heart is leading me._

I grimace and close the book. Well, maybe the book isn't as good as I thought it had been a month ago. Tossing the book onto my bedside stand, I turn off the light and wait for sleep to overtake me.

**Draco's Flat**

My soup is growing cold, and though I have stared at it for about half an hour now, I can't make myself reach forth to pick up the spoon and start eating.

My mind is a million miles away.

Ever since Hermione socked me in third year, I have admired her, whether for her brains, her beauty, or her courage.

After the war had ended and my family made peace with her, Potter, and the Weasleys, I had been hoping to get a shot at her.

The first attempt I had made was asking her to work for my family's company, which she pleasantly accepted. However, before I could make a second attempt, the orangutan-who-knew-how-to-walk-on-two-legs beat me to it; thus, the last four years have been a drag for me, watching a beautiful girl go waltzing around with That Weasley.

It isn't like I had something against Weasley, it was just that...I have something against Weasley.

Heaving a sigh, I run a hand through my already-mussed hair, courtesy of the same gesture already having been performed about thirty times earlier.

Another half an hour later, I have finally come up with a feasible plan, so feeling rather pleased with myself, I pick up my spoon and plunge it into my soup, bringing it up to my lips.

Then sputtering and coughing loudly.

Bleh. Cold soup does _not_ taste good.

* * *

**A/N:** Wow. Draco sounds really OOC, and I apologize for that, but as this is about the fifth rendition of this same story, I'm leaving it the way that it is.

**Quote: **"My room isn't messy; it is an obstacle course designed to keep me fit."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hello Again! Thank you to those whom reviewed! Again, I don't own Harry Potter and if I did, I would probably never update again to the fact that I'd die of happiness. So, yeah. J.K. Rowling owns the Harry Potter Series. Hope you like this.**

_Merlin! I'm going to be late_, are my first thoughts. _Ouch, I hate falling out of bed_, are my second thoughts.

I sigh as she realize that I made an Unbreakable Vow not to go to work today. I get out of the pile of tangled blankets I'm in and levitated them back onto my bed. I straighten them out, fluff the pillows, and head to the bathroom.

I grab my toothbrush and brush my teeth, missing my parents' lectures about taking care of my smile. Although I sent my parents to Australia to be safe, they still were killed. Someone broke into their house and killed them. I still miss them to this very day.

I choose a pair of jeans and a black T-shirt, then take a shower, letting the water trickle down my back before I started attacking my hair with my new shampoo. it works miracles and my hair no longer can be classified as a bush.

After I towel off and get dressed, I brush my hair dry and let it hang loose. I leave the bathroom and entered the kitchen, nuking a quarter of the leftover shepherd's pie.

After I finish eating, I decided to go to the Danube Park. It has been a while since I have been there.

I grab my coat and off the hook and pick up a book, not _The Call of the Night_, and step outside, immediately deciding that I don't need a coat. I go back in, hang my coat up, and re-emerged from my house. Instead of apparating, I decided to walk to Danube Park and enjoy the fine weather.

~DMHG~

I wake up to my pillow singing a muggle song.

"Shuddup," I mutter as I turn over.

The pillow keeps singing.

I groan as I feel around my bedside table to find my wand. I can't find it, so I opened my eyes, squinting in the morning sunlight. It was just a tiny bit farther than I was reaching. I grab it and flick it at my pillow and the pillow falls silent.

"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," a familiar voice says tauntingly.

"What the heck are you doing here," I yelp.

There stands Pansy Ottowell née Parkinson.

"Your main dish is heading out of the house right now," she say with a smirk that is clearly copied from mine.

"What do you mean main dish?" I ask after calming down.

"Granger."

At my probably very-surprised expression, she giggles.

"Your father forgot to cast a silencing charm in his office yesterday, and I heard word-for-word what you said."

"No worries," she continues, "I won't tell anyone, but if you want to put your plan into action, you'd better get going."

"What do you know about my plan," I demand.

"Everything," she says, breaking the word into syllables.

"You were talking in your sleep."

I groan. Dang, what's going on with silencing charms these days.

"As I said, you might want to get going. She's just leaving her house to go to the park."

It takes a second for the fact to sink in. I yelp and jump out of bed, grabbing a white T-shirt and jeans.

Pansy shakes her head as I run around, trying to find something to transfigure. With a quick flick of her wand, she makes my bed for me and starts to leave the house.

"Thanks Pans," I call after her.

"You're welcome," she calls back.

I take a really quick shower and get dressed. I grab the most vital part of my plan and put it on around my neck and run out of the house, morphing as I run.

It's a necklace with a silver tag that has an inscription on it and a broken chain hanging off of it.

~DMHG~

I sit down on the bench and started reading from my book. It's an interesting book about a eighteen year old boy named Ben who is working on a ship. Ben has his eye on a girl named Liz, but she doesn't like him because he is the son of a shoemaker, so he begins working at sea.

_"If one whom knows not the rum and whiskey, one shall have the coughing fit," Pozzenale warned me._

_"Aye mate," I told him, "I am yet to learn the ways of rum and whiskey."_

_"Ah, that's my boy, ready to learn the ways of drinkin' in the trade," Pozzenale said, tousling my hair._

_Me, I just grinned._

_He set a mug in front of me and I lift it to my lips and take myself a drink._

_I didn't have a coughing fit, but I just sat there like a log as the rum burned its way down my throat._

_"Aye, lookie here; young Ben knows how to hold his rum."_

Suddenly, I feel something nuzzling my hand. When I looked down, I see a beautiful Golden Retriever. I set the book down and kneeled down next to the dog, petting it.

"Why hello," I say softly as I rub the dog.

The dog barks at me.

"Hello to you too," I say with a laugh.

The dog tilts its head to the side and whines.

"What's your name?" I ask as I try to get a hold on the dog's collar while the dog squirms.

I looked the dog in the eye. "Sit," I said sternly.

The dog sits.

I reach out and try to find the tag, but there is no tag. It had broken off.

I frown as I look at the other tag on the collar.

_Draco: If he got loose again and is digging up your tulips, sorry. I'll come pick him up, just get word to me. Thanks._

I laugh.

"Trust Malfoy to write a sorry note but not include your name. Well, let's find your owner boy," I say as I get up.

"Malfoy," I call.

There was no answer.

I call twice more and conclude he isn't in the area.

I pull out her wand and cast my Patronus.

"Hey Malfoy, I found your dog. Never knew you had a dog, but that's not the point. No, he's not digging up my tulips, but he's right here next to me at Danube Park. I would suggest that you include the name of your dog in your apology, because the nametag broke and I have no idea what your dog's name is."

With a flick of my wand, her otter starts off, but comes back to me. It rests itself on the dog, repeats the message, and disappears.

I am confused. Why didn't my Patronus go?

I sigh, for about the two-hundredth time.

"I guess you'll be staying with me until I send an owl to Malfoy."

With that, the two of us go back to the bench and sit down.

The dog nudges my hand and when he has my attention, he nudges the book towards me.

"Silly dog," I say as I pick my book up and open it.

Before I can start reading, the dog nudges me again.

I look up and laugh, rubbing him behind the ears.

"I'm gonna call you Nudge until I find out your real name," I tell him.

The dog nudges the book then barks.

"You want me to read to you?" I ask.

Nudge barks.

"Smart dog," I praise, rubbing his ear. "Does Draco read to you?"

I'm rewarded with a bark.

Nudge lays his head down in her lap and I start reading again, this time, out loud.

_"Good job there Ben," the others praised me._

_"'ere, let's call a toast," Lichenmoss said as he raised his mug._

_"Aye," Pozzenale said, raising his._

_"You too," he whispered to me._

_I raised my glass and so did all the others._

_We smacked glasses, sloshing rum over the sides and soaking our fingers._

_I took another drink, letting the rum burn its way down my throat. The others told tales about old happenings on our ship._

_One tale about the time that Hodendale painted over the name of our ship, turning Big Bass into a commonly used swear, got me really laughing and I spilled half my mug._

_We soon finished up and started retired to our cabins._

_"Ye did a good job Ben boy," Ritchetong told me as he staggered his way back to his cabin._

_"Thanks mate," I tell him as I went through the door of my own cabin. Things start getting blurry and I barely make it into bed before I swirl into a world of color._

I stop reading when I feel a tap on my shoulder. Nudge looks up and growls. I turn around and come face-to-face with Ron.

I stand up

"Go away Ron," I tell him angrily.

"But 'Mione, I miss you," he tells me. Nudge growls again.

"Easy, boy," I tell him as I put a hand on his back.

"I don't want to talk to you," I tell Ron as I walk away, Nudge trailing at my feet.

A hand clamps down on my arm.

"Please Hermione, don't be so cruel," he says coyly, trying to wrap an arm around my waist.

"Stop Ron," I tell him as I unwind his arm from my waist.

His grip on my arm tightens and I cry out.

Suddenly, Nudge nips Ron's foot and Ron whirls around.

"Why you-" Ron says, but I duck out of his reach.

Nudge and I make a run for it.

"Hermione, wait up!" Ron calls from behind me, but I don't stop.

"Here, Nudge," I call.

Nudge follows my into an alley. We wait for Ron to come and I pull out my wand.

Ron doesn't come, so we emerge from the alley.

"Thanks Nudge," I whisper.

He barks and paws at the ground.

I look over at him and see that he's bleeding.

"Oh," I say, alarmed.

I kneel down next to him and lift his paw up. I cast a healing charm on it and it goes back to normal.

"Let's go back," I say.

We walk back to the park in silence.

~DMHG~

I spot Hermione sitting on a bench, reading. Typical.

I pad my way over to her and nuzzle her hand. She kneels down next to me and pets me.

"Why hello," she tells me.

"Hey," I bark back to her.

"Hello to you too," she laughs.

I tilt my head to the side and sigh. Her hands are so soft.

"What's your name?" she asks.

Draco, I think as I squirm.

She looks me in the eye and tells me to sit. I follow her order.

She immediately finds my broken tag.

_Success._

She quickly locates the other tag, reads it, then laughs. I love her laugh. It's a beautiful sound, and I'm proud that I made her laugh.

"Trust Malfoy to write a sorry note but not include your name. Well, let's find your owner boy," she says. Is that an insult or a compliment? I think it's the first. Dang.

She calls 'Malfoy' three times, and every time she does, I'm trying not to bark "Yeah?" back to her.

She casts her patronus and sends it off. I wonder what it will do and if it will blow my cover. Luckily, it doesn't blow my cover. Hermione's so cute when she looks confused.

"I guess you'll be staying with me until I send an owl to Malfoy," she tells me.

I smirk, but I'm not sure that she notices.

We go back to the bench and I hop up on it.

I nudge her hand when I have her attention, I nudge the book towards her.

"Silly dog," she say, picking the book up.

I nudge her again

She laughs and rubs my ear.

"I'm gonna call you Nudge until I find out your real name," she tells me.

Nudge? Nudge. Not a bad name, but for a Malfoy, stupidly embarrassing.

I nudge the book and bark, the equivalence of "read to me, darling" in the human language.

"You want me to read to you?" she asks.

"Well, you're not that bad at interpreting," I tell her before realizing that she doesn't understand me as a dog.

"Smart dog," she says as she rubs my ear.

"Does Draco read to you?"

"Well, I do read a lot," I tell her, barking yet again.

I lay my head down and listen to her read. Her sweet voice washes over me, and I relax.

I wonder how she will feel when she realizes that I lay my head in her lap after I transform back. I can't imagine her shock.

Suddenly, my angel stops reading and I look up. It's the Weasley boy.

"You ditched her; she's mine now," I growl.

She tells him to go away, but he tries to sweet talk her into letting him stay.

"Don't you dare," I growl.

"Easy, boy," Hermione tells, putting a hand on my back.

Granger tells Weasel-Bee that she doesn't want to talk to him and we walk away. He grabs her arm and tries to wrap an arm around her waist. She tries unwinding his arm, but he doesn't let her. She cries out and that's it.

I nip the Weasley on his foot and Hermione and I take off.

I feel a pain in my foot, but I keep running.

_Ronald_ chases us, but we keep running.

"Here, Nudge," Hermione says. I follow her into an alley and wait as she draws her wand. After about five minutes, the Weasley hasn't found us, so we emerge.

"Thanks Nudge," she says.

I am just about to follow her when my paw starts to hurt. I look down. I'm bleeding.

I bark and tap the ground. Hermione kneels next to me and lifts my paw, healing it.

We head back to the Park.

~DMHG~

When we get to the Park, there is no sign of Ron. I breathe a sigh of relief.

I go back to the bench, but don't feel like reading anymore. I sigh and put the book down.

I suddenly find myself pinned to the ground. Nudge is sitting on top of me. If I didn't know better, I'd think that the dog was grinning.

I start wrestling with Nudge, who proves to be very strong. Finally, I flip over onto my back. Nudge licks my face and I close my eyes and turn my head to the side.

"Alright, alright," I say, laughing at Nudge's antics. "You win."

As if sensing his victory, he gets off me and lays himself across my stomach, resting his head on the right side of my ribcage.

I just lay there, staring as cotton candy clouds drift across the sky. I close my eyes and rest. Nudges breathes are in sync with me, and I, believe it or not, start talking to Nudge.

"Hey Nudge, tomorrow is the day my brother died. He was not even ten when he died. He was nine and I was twelve; in my third year at Hogwarts. I threw myself into my studies and had to get a time turner to get to all the classes. That was a year that I began to notice your owner. I'm not saying that he was the man I had my eye on at the time, but he was devilishly handsome."

I'm about to go on when Nudge looks at me with that crazy grin.

"Oh stop that," I say, laughing, "you silly dog."

Nudge barks and does a doggy version of rolling his eyes and I laugh.

Out of the not-so-clear anymore sky, it starts to rain.

"Oh shoot," I say, scrambling to my feet and grabbing my book.

I pick Nudge up and hold him to my chest.

"Sorry buddy," I say as I apparate away to my flat.

~DMHG~

When we get back to the park, Weasley isn't there and Granger relaxes.

Granger, bookworm extraordinaire, for once, doesn't want to read, so I tackle her to the ground, and sit on top of her. I grin. It feels so good to be in command, even though I am a dog.

She starts wrestling and I do admit, she's good for a girl.

She finally gives up, letting me pin her down. I plant kisses all over her face and she turns her head to the side, crying out "Alright, alright."

When she tells me that I've won, I lay down across her stomach. Her breaths are even and I make my breaths match hers.

Hermione starts talking about her brother and then says something that I never thought she'd say.

"That was a year that I began to notice your owner. I'm not saying that he was the man I had my eye on at the time, but he was devilishly handsome."

She said "at the time," I notice with a jolt. Did she begin to like me later?

I can't help but grin at the revelation.

"Oh stop that," she says adoringly. "You silly dog."

I roll my eyes.

"I'm not silly," I bark, "just head-over-paws in love with you."

It starts to rain and Hermione scrambles to her feet and grabs her book.

She picks me up and holds me to her chest and apparates.

~DMHG~

We arrive outside my flat. I scan my finger and let myself in. I set Nudge down and pull my soaking hair back.

"Oh," I say, disappointed at the condition my book is in. It is soaked and the ink is bleeding all over my hands.

"Stay and don't shake," I tell Nudge, but he's too interested in his surroundings. I pull my sneakers off and leave them by the door. I toss my book in the trash and run to the bathroom to grab a towel, leaving wet footprints all over the floor.

I bring the towel back and rub Nudge dry. I head back to my bedroom and toss the towel into a basket. I strip my shirt off, toss it in the same basket, and start peeling my pants off.

It seems that Nudge is staring at me as I pull my pants off.

"Stop that," I scold him before sighing.

"Well, unless you find a way to tell Draco about what you saw, I guess it's fine," I say as I start to pull my bra off.

Nudge looks away. I toss my underwear and bra into the basket and grab a simple nightgown, hurrying off to the bathroom to shower.

I lock the door for good measure.

~DMHG~

Granger apparates to her flat and scans her finger to let us in. She puts me down and I look around. It is a warm cozy flat that just what I imagined her flat to be like.

"Stay and don't shake," she tells me as she runs off.

She comes back and towels me off. I bark a thanks to her and follow her as she walks away.

She tosses the towel into a basket and starts stripping. I never thought that prude bookish Granger would wear a lacy black bra.

I stare at her fine upper body, admiring her curves. She starts peeling her pants and I find myself wondering if she's wearing black lace panties too. She is, and I find myself thinking some dirty thoughts. I shake my head.

She scolds me and says something like "it's fine to watch as long as you don't find a way to tell Draco what you saw."

I decided to look away, because how odd would it feel tomorrow when I made my human form known to her and she realized that I had been eying her up?

Probably not that comfortable. I wait to hear the door's lock click before I turn back. Good, she's out of sight.

~DMHG~

I finish taking my shower and exit the bathroom.

Nudge follows me into the kitchen and watches me open the fridge.

I pull out the rest of the shepherd's pie. My stomach growls. I didn't eat lunch again. Dang.

I nuke the shepherd's pie and then split it.

"Hope you like shepherd's pie Nudge, 'cause I'm not making steak today," I tell him as I set a plate down in front of him. I bring my plate over to the table and set it down. I grab a shallow dish and fill it with water and set it down in front of him.

I sit down and start eating. After I finish, I look over at Nudge. He's eying my plate. I chuckle.

"Silly Nudgie Boy," I say as I rub behind his ears.

I walk back to the bathroom and brush my teeth. I braid my dry hair and tie the braid off. I sling the braid back over my shoulder and walk back into my bedroom. I pick up The Call of the Night and slide under the covers.

Nudge jumps up onto the bed and burrows his way under the covers.

"You wanna hear me read?" I ask.

Nudge just nudges my hand. I open the book back up and continue from where I left off, reading out loud so that Nudge can listen too.

_I soon arrive at home and dry my tears._

_My father is at the gates, ready to meet me._

_"Where were you," he demands._

_"I was in the far orchards," I tell him._

_"Ahh," he says. I've fooled him._

_"Well Ashley, it's time to come to dinner. I've invited a young man over. I expect you to come down in finery. His name is Donnely." he tells me sternly._

_"Yes Father," I say obediently._

_He turns away. I run up to my room and pack a bag full of clothes and stuff all my earnings and allowances into the bag. I place it behind the door and get dressed in the dress that Father bought me last week. It is a beautiful light green silk dress with a cream colored sash. Little black flowers are scattered all over the front of the gown._

_I head down to dinner. Donnely is a handsome man, but his personality is atrocious. He is like a pig in a human body._

_"So, did you see the rally at Crowhagen?" he asks, his mouth full._

_"No, I didn't," I say politely._

_"Well you should've." he says crossly._

_"I'm sorry, but I was busy," I tell him, patience running thin._

_"Of course you were," Donnely mutters._

_"Shut up," I say angrily as I stand up. "I am tired of hearing words spew from your filthy mouth."_

_My parents gasp. My father slams his fist down on the table as Donnely roars with laughter._

_"To your room," Father roars._

_"Fiesty, just like I like it," Donnely chortles. I wrinkle my nose in disgust._

_I walk up to my room and close the door._

_It's only when I hear the click of the key in the lock do I realize what Father has done to me._

_He has locked me in._

_I waste no time, knotting my bedsheets together and tying it to my bedpost. I tie my pack on and start descending from my window._

_All the books I've read never have described how hard it is to do. It isn't as simple as sliding down a rope. I nearly have fallen twice when I get to the end of the line. I'm about five feet above ground. The ground swims in front of my eyes, and with a plea to God, I let go, dropping the eight feet._

_I hit the ground with a muffled thump. I wince as I examine the mud all over my dress, and listen to the chatter inside._

_"Good-bye," I whisper._

_With luck, I'll never have to be back and Danchestere Mansion again._

I close the book and place it on my bedside stand. With a flick of my wand, I turn the lights out. I place my wand on my bedside stand and wrap my arms around Nudge.

"Night Nudgie," I say as I drift off to sleep.

**A/N: How was that? I know that Draco is a bit OOC, but that's because he's a dog. I hope I wasn't to harsh on Ron. Well, he's strong; he can take it. I just need that dynamic to get Hermione to trust "Nudge." Well, I will post once I have a few more reviews. Thanks for the support.**

**Are you overworked like Hermione was? How about this quote?**

_"I need a six month vacation, twice a year."_

_-(?)_

**~13hermionegrangerlover**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Final part! I don't own Harry Potter, but I do own every little section from the books read and mentioned in here. It's kind of a stupid ending, but yeah.**

Hermione woke up to slobbery doggie kisses.

"I'm up," she said, "I'mup, I'mup, I'mup," she said. **(A/N: This is me in the morning: Flop a arm around to show that I'm awake then say "I'mup, I'mup, I'mup." Then I don't do anything.)**

Hermione sighed as she looked at her bedside calendar. Today was the day Jack died. He had been sick of leukemia for a while and had been making improvement so the news came out of no where.

She stumbled to the bathroom and brushed her teeth.

After she was actually more than 25% conscious, she went back into her bedroom and grabbed some at-home clothes took a shower, letting herself relive all the memories of Jack.

She toweled her hair dry and walked to the kitchen, where Nudge was waiting patiently for her, his unnatural blonde tail wagging.

"Morning Nudge," she said with a yawn.

Nudge barked a response back to her and did the doggy 'smile.' Hermione rubbed him between his ears and opened up the fridge, pulling out some crepes that Ginny sent her and popped them in the microwave, standing there and waiting for the microwave to stop.

"Not exactly the healthy lifestyle," she said. "Not really sure what you'll eat. If you need to vomit, feel free to use the trashcan," she said as she pointed it out.

Nudge sat down and waited, cocking his head to the side.

The microwave beeped and Hermione removed the crepes.

She divided them and placed some in front of Nudge and filled the same shallow dish that she had used the day before with water for Nudge.

Hermione placed some butter on the crepes, waiting for it to melt as she cut up some strawberries.

"Hey Nudge," she called, "can you eat strawberries?"

Her hand was empty three seconds later.

She chuckled and cut up the rest of the strawberries, placing them around the edges of the crepes. She sat down and started eating her breakfast. Nudge sat there and waited for her as she finished the last buttery strawberry.

She picked up her plate and Nudge's and brought them to the sink.

As she washed the dishes, she started talking to Nudge.

"Today, I'm planning on doing a few of Jack's favorite things. Jack loved music and played the saxophone. Pop played the piano and mum played the drums. I played the violin. Jack couldn't ever get through the whole song without laughing when we played together, saying that it sounded like some sort of wild animal ensemble. Sorry if it bothers your ears, but I'm going to try and play my violin."

She scratched his ears and went to her bedroom. Nudge followed her and invited himself to her bed.

Hermione pulled her violin case out from the back of her closet and laid it down on her bed.

She unzipped the case and undid the lock with great care. She opened her case and pulled the velcro strip back to release her violin. She pulled the velcro strip that held the Kun (shoulder rest) back and removed it.

She slipped the Kun onto her violin and put it down. She twisted the piece holding her bow to the case and removed her bow. She pulled out her rosin, and began rosining her bow hairs. She put her bow down and picked her violin up and began tuning.

"A," she hummed as she plucked the string, making adjustments with the pegs and doing fine tuning with the fine tuners.

She then tuned her other strings and picked her bow up. She tested the strings out to make sure that they sounded in tune with each other and then began to play.

Any song that Jack had liked. Petty Waters and its reel, the Vivaldi Concerto in A minor for Strings, MacPherson's Lament, Hungarian Dance No. 5, Dawn Until Dusk, and finally his favorite. Fiocco Allegro by Joseph-Hector Fiocco.

Her bow danced across the strings as she played her way thorough the fast fingerings and trills. She closed her eyes, putting all her effort into the remembrance of her brother.

She finished the song with a chord, letting the notes ring all the way to their fullest.

As she packed her violin up she choked back tears. As she put her violin back in the recesses of her closet, the floodwaters broke and she started crying for her brother.

She felt a lick on her hand and looked up to see Nudge there. She wrapped her arms around Nudge and sobbed her heart out as she thought back to Jack's bright blue eyes, just like her father's.

As her sobs subsided, Nudge placed his front legs on her shoulders and planted big slobbery doggy-kisses all over her until she laughed.

"Do you go swimming?" she asked Nudge.

Nudge's eyes lit up and she grinned.

"Jack loved to go swimming," she said as she pulled her black swimsuit out from the back of her closet.

She left the room and went to the bathroom to change. After she finished, she came back out of the bathroom and tied her hair up. She picked Nudge up, and apparated out to the pool.

For the next hour or so, they went swimming together. Diving, racing, and splashing each other. Surprisingly, Nudge didn't do the doggy-paddle, but something that was much like a human swimming.

"Are you a human," she asked Nudge as she splashed him back.

Nudge 'smiled' and barked back to her; then, he splashed her.

"I don't know is that was a yes or a no," she said as she wiped the water out of her eyes.

She splashed him back and the others in the pool stared at her.

"What," she snapped, "I am talking to a dog. It's an everyday occurrence."

Everybody looked away.

She climbed out of the pool and dangled her feet in.

"Hey Nudge, how fast can you get to the other side of the pool," she asked as she pulled her wet hair back into its ponytail.

Nudge started swimming and she started counting on her stopwatch.

"54 seconds. Not bad," she said as he plodded back.

Nudge barked.

"You want me to try?" she asked.

Nudge barked.

She placed herself at the edge of the pool and dove in, swimming like a knife from one side to the next. When she emerged at the other side, she glanced up at the watch.

"50 seconds. Sorry Nudge," she said when she saw the dog's "smile" droop.

"Hey, let's go get some ice cream," she said as she headed for the ladder.

At this, Nudge perked up and following her out of the pool.

As Hermione walked to the ice cream stand, she didn't hear Nudge following her. She turned around-just in time to get shaken all over.

"Thanks Nudgie," she said as she squeezed out her hair.

They went over to the ice cream stand and waited in line. When they got there, Hermione ordered a vanilla butterscotch ripple for herself, and a dog ice cream for Nudge.

After they finished their treats, Hermione apparated them home and they stood in the front entrance of her flat. She scanned her finger and entered the flat with Nudge following her, wearing a vanilla smile.

"Silly Nudge," she said with a shake of her head as she left to get a towel.

She came back and knelt down next to Nudge.

"Hey Nudge, I got to give you back to Draco tomorrow. How about steak."

Nudge's excited expression was enough to give his thought away.

"Okay," she said with an affectionate ear rub.

She prepared the steak and left it to sizzle as she took her shower, getting changed into a cream colored nightgown.

After she came back, she removed the steak and cut it so that half was for Nudge and half was for her. She warmed up some peas, corn, and mashed potatoes that Ginny had sent over and split it between them.

"Last day," she said.

Nudge didn't seem sad, so she frowned. She was going to miss the little bugger. Maybe she could doggy-sit Nudge, or whatever his name was, for Draco.

"Oh well," she sighed as she cleaned up the plates.

She went to the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and braided her hair.

"Time to finish _The Call of the Night_," she told Nudge as he wiggled his way in between the mattress and the sheets.

_I hike my way down to the ferry, wondering what Frederick is doing right now and where he is at._

_When I get close, I hear arguing and decide to investigate._

_"I promise," a voice said._

_"I need the money right now," another said._

_"I do have it," the first voice said._

_With a jolt, I realized that it was Frederick._

_"Sir, he has the money," I said as I emerge._

_"He just left it over at my house," she said as she forked over all the money that she had earned._

_The other man counted the wrinkled dollars out and handed me back the extra._

_"Go on," he said gruffly, "cabin 105."_

_Frederick, his grandparents, and I got into our cabin, waiting the long boat ride out._

_"We're going to America," I whispered in an excited voice._

_"We are. But there is still one reason for me to be sad," Frederick told me._

_"What," I asked._

_"I didn't get to hear you sing."_

_I laughed._

_"You will hear me sing of freedom when I step foot on America's fine soil," I said._

_And it was true. When I set foot on American soil, I sang for all the joy I felt._

_"Hey lassie," a voice called from behind me, "you wanna work for me? I am a playwright."_

_I was surprised, but readily accepted._

_Frederick found a job not long after, and we all got settled._

_And that's why you are here today grandchildren, because of a rope made of bedsheets._

I put the book down on my bedside stand.

"Good storyline, crappy, cheesy ending," I say in annoyance as I turn the lights out. "Sadly, not all romance stories have a good ending."

I turn so that I'm facing the ceiling and wrap my arm around Nudge. Suddenly, Nudge clambers up on top of me.

"What is it boy," I ask, on the alert.

Suddenly, Nudge starts morphing.

Morphing into smirking Malfoy.

Oh. My. God.

Draco has seen me wrestle, strip down to my undies, swim, read romance books, and play my violin. Malfoy!

It takes me a few seconds to realize that I'm in a see through nightgown that is proudly showing of my black lace undies.

I try to move further under the covers, but I can't. Malfoy's arms are on either side of me like he's doing a pushup and his legs are on either side of me.

"Stop struggling Granger," he whispers in my ear, his hair falling into my face.

I shiver at the tone of his voice.

"You're an animagus," I whisper as he looks into my eyes.

He smirks.

"Do you know why I chose to seek you out yesterday? Do you know why I growled at Weasel-bee as he tried to steal you back? Do you know why I pretended to act like a common household pet?" he asks me, crooning in my ear.

I shake my head no; my cheeks are probably stained crimson.

"Because I want you Hermione. I want you because you managed to resist my charm, throughout all of your Hogwart years; or so I thought. Tell me, did you ever like me, Hermione?"

The way that he says my name is so beautiful and I find myself shivering.

"Did you?" he asks again, staring into my eyes with his pools of molten sterling, head tilted to the side.

I swallow, but can't form any words.

"Did you, or do you," he asks with a coy smile.

"I still do," I say, finally able to manage a few words.

"Good," he says, nibbling at my ear. "Now tell me that you want me."

Without a second though I speak.

"I want you too."

(SCENE THAT I DON'T FEEL LIKE INCLUDING/WRITING. YOU PROBABLY CAN GUESS WHAT THE SCENE'S ABOUT. NO FLAMES ABOUT THE FACT THAT I DIDN'T INCLUDE THIS SCENE; PLEASE.)

We lie on the bed panting. Draco captures my lips in a kiss once more and whispers in my ear.

"No all romance stories have a good ending, but this one does."

_**THE NEXT DAY:**_

"Hmm," Sanjea said. "I wonder where Hermione is."

As if on cue, Hermione rushed in and glanced at the clock.

"Dang it," she said. "One second late."

"Relax. Just relieve that stress you're feeling."

Hermione smirked as she bent over her work.

"You wouldn't be saying that if you knew what I did yesterday night," she chuckled softly, but Sanjea heard.

"You..._relieved stress..._as in the typical way?"

"Yeah, what's new," Hermione said as she chewed on the end of her quill.

"Who?" Sanjea asked her.

Just that second, Draco rushed in and handed her a book. "Sorry that _Seabound Ben_ got ruined in the rain. Come over to the manor tonight?" he asked.

Hermione smiled as she accepted the book.

"Sure."

"Okay, see you tonight," Draco said, before pressing his lips to hers. They stayed there for a while, then Hermione pulled back.

"See you tonight too, Nudgie," she said with a Slytherin-worthy smirk and a quick kiss on the his cheek.

Draco smiled and rushed out and down to his office.

"Ooookay," Sanjea said, taking a step back.

"You don't want to know," Hermione said as she put the book down.

As Sanjea walked out of her office, Hermione heard her mutter something.

"Care to repeat that?" Hermione asked.

Sanjea turned back to her.

"I said, I'm not sure that giving you a vacation is a good idea."

**A/N: Cheesy ending to this fanfic, cheesy ending to the romance book. Anyways, that's the end. So yeah. If you like this Dramione, check out my other stories, **_Fiery Gryffindor Princess, Cold Slytherin Prince_**, and**_ I've Been Keeping Secrets._

**That's all!**

**Never take your life for granted! EVER! **

_**Don't try suicide, because someone out there cares for you. Don't cut yourself, life shouldn't be so bad that you would do that to yourself. If you are anorexic or bulimic, PLEASE, tell a friend and get help. You are beautiful the way you are and don't let anybody tell you the opposite. You are the boss of yourself and if you feel like you are in a bad relationship, tell somebody. You are your own worst enemy when you hide in fear. Every once in a while, it's good to cry.**_

_"You never know the meaning of dangerous until you've nearly broken your neck about twenty times, or actually done so."_

_-Anonymous_

**~13hermionegrangelover**

This, below, is added after the story was written, so yeah.

**_**GUYS! I AM GOING TO BE CHANGING MY PEN NAME FROM 13HERMIONEGRANGERLOVER TO .STARLIGHT-MIST! I JUST NEED TO PUT THIS NOTE UP IN MY OTHER STORIES SO EVERYONE KNOWS, THEN I WILL BE CHANGING MY PEN NAME. IF YOU EVER ARE GOING TO SEARCH ME, BE AWARE THAT THE NUMBER 13 WILL ALWAYS BE AT THE BEGINNING OF MY PEN NAME.**_**


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